Dalhousie teens rescued from ravine in woods

Girls, aged 14 and 16, stranded for several hours, treated for exposure

The girls fell down a ravine in the woods about one kilometre behind Dalhousie Regional High School. (Google Maps)

Two teenaged girls are expected to make a full recovery after being stranded in the woods in Dalhousie for about four hours on Tuesday.

The girls, aged 14 and 16, had fallen down a steep ravine off of a walking trail, about one kilometre behind Dalhousie Regional High School, said RCMP Sgt. Stephen Dibblee.

They weren't injured, but weren't dressed for the cold weather and had lost their shoes when they fell, at about 10 a.m., he said.

One of the girls used a cell phone to call RCMP for help at about 12:30 p.m.

"Through contact of them through the dispatchers, both the 911 and the dispatching, we were able to triangulate a spot where they were and the two initial officers were able to locate them," said Dibblee.

"They had gone off the main trail onto … a smaller trail, then slid off onto an area with a bit of a hill where they weren't able to climb back up out on their own."

By the time police managed to pinpoint their location, the girls were showing signs of hypothermia and frostbite, said Dibblee.

"They were quite frantic, they had been panicked, a little bit confused and they were starting to feel the effects of the cold weather."

Officers used their batons to pull the girls to safety at about 2 p.m.

"The members then, at that time, because [the girls] didn't have footwear and they were starting to feel the effects of the ice and having been standing on ice and snow, put them on their backs and actually carried them out on their backs," said Dibblee.

"Meanwhile, three more officers arrived on scene and they took turns rotating, putting them up on their backs to help get them out."

The girls were treated for exposure at the Campbellton Regional Hospital and released, he said.